Behind a Stranger's Malice
by Akuma-Koneko
Summary: One year ago, in their fifth year, Ron declared his love to Hermione, and they've been going out ever since until she catches him cheating. Now, she finds comfort in the least likely person. Or has he been the most likely person all the time?
1. Betrayal and Flight

She sat up with a gasp. She was in the common room…that was normal. She'd fallen asleep over her homework. Also normal. But the absence of her best friend's and boyfriend's presence near her…was _not_ normal…and neither was that faint hint of a giggle, punctuated with the deeper laughter of a male from upstairs. She swung her legs of the couch and sat up. A note had been left on the seat that she remembered her friend sitting in.

Hey,

Gone to quidditch practice, and I'll visit the kitchen on the way back. Will probably return loaded with snacks, so I hope you're hungry. See you in a few hours.

Ah. Well, that explained _one_ of them. The giggle sounded again, and was cut off. It continued after a moment, however, and as Head Girl she knew that it was her job, if not her wish, to find out what was going on. She walked deliberately up the stairs, careful to set her foot quietly on each stair. Reaching the landing, she stood between the two doors and listened for the telltale giggle to sound again. There-from the boys dorm. Gee, what a surprise, she thought. One of the boys thinks he can get away with making out with some girl in broad daylight over Easter break. Not likely.

She opened the door, slowly and quietly. Again, she did her best to muffle her footsteps as she approached the one bed with its curtains pulled closed. She reached the foot of the bed, realizing as she did this that there were three people sitting there, two of them female. She sighed; it wasn't that she wanted to interrupt their fun, but it really was her job. So, taking a deep breath, she reached out a hand to pull back the hangings – and then the boy spoke again, and she recognized his voice all too well. Hermione savagely wrenched open the curtains and glared down at the unfortunate trio. The boy's shirt was halfway unbuttoned, with one girl's fingers frozen motionless on the next button. The other girl's blouse had been removed, leaving her draped across his neck in nothing but a bra.

"……….You…" Unable to speak, she turned away from him, the one boy who had stated only a year before that he loved her.

As she started to dash away from the three, a shimmer caught her eye – her friends invisibility cloak lay abandoned on the floor. She snatched it up and then ran, blinded by tears out of the common room, through the great hall, and out of the castle. On her way to Hagrid's hut, she stopped. She couldn't tell anyone just yet, especially not Hagrid. She changed course, and ran to the far side of the lake, still invisible. There, she collapsed against a tree and sobbed, crying harder than she had ever cried before.

But she didn't realize that her sobs were carried across the lake, amplified by the water. On the other side, a boy was also sitting, gazing at his reflection in the smooth, placid lake. His ears caught what his two lackey's ears missed; the heartrending, broken sobs from his worst enemy's best friend, the mudblood, Hermione Granger.


	2. Comfort

Hermione Granger's sobs echoed eerily across the diamond-like lake, punctuating the peaceful silence Draco Malfoy had come to enjoy. He looked up from his reflection, straining his eyes to find the source of the sobbing. His eyes, gorgeous gray orbs, found nothing. His smooth, pale skin creased slightly on his forehead. Deep in thought, he was interrupted by a rumble from his crony's stomach.

"Goyle, Crabbe, go inside. Leave me."

He waited in silence for the sounds their plodding footsteps to fade. Without their hulking bodies leaning over him, distracting him, his thoughts came easier.

_Now then_, Malfoy thought, _why would Granger be out there crying all alone? Maybe Potter and Weasley are ignoring her again?_ After a few more moment's thought, he decided against that idea. _No, she's coped with that well enough before…this is something more. Ah, I bet Weasley cheated on her. That would make sense._

The tall boy rose gracefully to his feet, brushing his silvery-blonde hair away from his eyes as he scanned the other bank of the lake. He was unable to locate her, and her sobs were beginning to fade. Turning slightly, he glanced at the great doors of Hogwarts. No sign of anyone.

I'll go talk to her-this might be the best chance I get to really make Potty and the Weasel mad. Maybe I could make her hate them! I can't imagine anything that would upset them more.

He set off walking around the lake, but chose to come around Granger from behind so that she wouldn't run away. Even as he approached the sounds of her tears, he was unable to see her.

I hear her…If she's where she sounds like she is, she ought to be in plain view! So-why isn't she?

He searched his memory for other times when something like this had happened.

Aha! When I saw Potter's head at Hogsmeade-he must have an invisibility cloak. I suppose Granger stole it.

Directly behind Hermione now, he could discern a faint distortion in the air. He put his hand out and gently removed the hood from her head as he sat down beside her.

"Hey…What's wrong?" He schooled his features, which were now, as usual, attempting to form a smirk, to an expression of concern, almost tenderness.

"Get away from me, Malfoy! I-I don't want to talk right now, t-to anyone, especially n-not _you_." This speech, punctuated by sobs, was such a harsh rejection of his attempt as kindness that it almost upset him.

"What happened? I could hear you crying from all the way across the lake…Are you alright?" Resolving to try harder, he made his voice sound compassionate, full of concern – it wasn't as hard as he'd expected. She looked so, so forlorn that he couldn't help but pity her. She wasn't at all like that twit, Pansy, who only cried to achieve some goal (probably to make him feel guilty – too bad it never worked).

"N-n-nothing! I'm, fine! I'm fine..!" He tentatively placed his hand around her shoulders; he couldn't help it. She sounded as though she wanted to convince herself of this, rather than chase him away.

"Shhh..It's okay. Why don't you tell me what happened? You'll feel better, I promise." She still looked wary of whatever ulterior motives he might have, but gave in and confessed in a voice that was so broken with sobs it was all he could do not to hug her.

"It-it was R-Ron…I c-caught him in th-the boy's d-dorm with L-lavender an-and Pavarti! He w-was ch-cheating on me..!" Draco no longer had to force his face to assume the emotions he was trying to fake; in fact, he was no longer faking. He was so overcome with concern and pity for her, he was scaring himself. Draco Malfoy, the Ice-Prince, wasn't _supposed_ to feel pity for anyone, especially not the Mudblood Know-it-all, Hermione Granger. But he did. Unable to resist the temptations, he turned his body so that he could hug her, leaning his head onto her shoulder, stroking her hair with his other hand. She leaned back against him in an unconscious acceptance of the comfort he was offering, her tears falling onto his robes.

"Shhhh…It'll be alright. I know it will. Everything will be fine…"


	3. Harry's Rant

Chapter 3:

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the surrounding characters, etc.

Ah, before I continue with the story, I would like to thank all of my beloved reviewers.

Still, if you will take a look at my one _not_ beloved Reviewer (Losalou); please, in the future, if anyone else decides they do not like my story, feel free to tell me so, but also tell me WHY so I can actually do something about it. Thanks! (Don't worry, I'm done now. Enjoy)

_

* * *

__Draco turned his body so that he could hug her, leaning his head onto her shoulder, stroking her hair with his other hand. She leaned back against him in an unconscious acceptance of the comfort he was offering, her tears falling onto his robes._

"_Shhhh…It'll be alright. I know it will. Everything will be fine…" _

Hermione couldn't think; couldn't breathe. No one in this school was acting as they should, and it didn't make sense. She, Hermione, was at a loss, and did not understand anything at all; Ron, supposedly loyal to the end and her best friend, had cheated on her with not one, but _two_ of her classmates; and now, Draco Malfoy, who, under normal circumstances she considered her worst enemy, was acting as though he cared about her.

Whatever was going on, she wished it would stop…it was giving her a headache, and she thought for certain she had a fever, for she felt quite hot.

_Although, the hot part might be because I'm blushing. Worst enemy or not, I have to admit that Draco Malfoy is a fine figure of a boy. Quite handsome, especially when he isn't sneering at me as he usually does._

Despite her calm, dispassionate thoughts, Hermione couldn't help but react to such an awkward position. She sat stiffly in his arms, her tears long since dry. She sighed softly, her warm breath ruffling his silvery hair, preparing to break the mutual silence that had fallen over them. Gathering her courage, she spoke, her voice rough and hoarse from sobbing.

"Malfoy…not to be rude, but…Why..?" she asked stumblingly, blushing again from embarrassment at such a potentially insulting question; why had he, her acknowledged worst enemy, come to give her such comfort?

"Ah…I don't know, really. Erm, that is, I heard you crying and wanted to see who it was, and then you just looked so that…I mean…I couldn't just, you know, walk away…" He trailed off, confused and unsure of what he wanted to say versus what he should say. A blush spread across his pale skin, causing him to duck his head in humiliation. Hermione couldn't help but be skeptical – since when had Malfoy ever consciously tried to make anyone feel _better_? He hadn't, obviously. In fact, he normally went out of his way to make people feel _worse_. Still…she couldn't help but note that he had seemed sincerely concerned. But, wasn't he always acting for the professors? Rude though she knew it was, she couldn't trust his sincerity or apparent motive.

"Ah...well...I mean...Thank-"

"Draco!" the loud, slow voice of Crabbe interrupted her, and Malfoy cursed.

"Look – you're welcome. It was my pleasure. Just...don't tell anyone about this okay, Hermione? Ah – I mean, _Granger_."

"Oh, yes. I mean, I won't tell anyone." As she spoke she lifted the invisibility cloak over herself and stood, hurrying away, back to Gryffindor Tower. As she walked off, she muttered under her voice, "_Not_ that they'd believe me, about you being nice."

* * *

Hermione entered the common room. She paused,half expecting Ron to come bounding over to ask for help with his homework as he always did.

_Hah – help indeed. More like the answers._

Well, just because he was lazy (_Stupid_, whispered her subconscious), didn't mean that _she_ should be; so she headed directly to the couch where she had left her schoolbooks after fell asleep and resumed where she'd left off.

Twenty minutes later, Harry entered the common room in his quidditch robes, looking fit to kill.

"Where is Ron! Why didn't he go to quidditch? When I left he said he'd wait a few minutes longer to see if you woke up! Did you talk to him? Was he sick or something, to skip like that?" when he had finished hollering questions at her, Hermione tried to answer as best she could; no easy feat, as tears kept welling up at the very mention of Ron's name.

"Harry, Harry please calm…calm down…..when I woke up, I found your note, but Ron wasn't here…I," and her she had to pause as tears were threatening to stream down her face once more, "I heard him in the boys dorm…I think." Her lower lip trembled as she kept fighting back tears, her brow creased with the effort of hiding her tears and her lie from Harry. Fortunately for her, he was too preoccupied with Ron to notice her expression. In fact, he didn't seem to notice her at all as he stormed past her up the stairs. In a few minutes, Hermione could clearly discern two identical shrieks from the two girls (Parvarti and Lavender) and Harry's voice raised in fury.A vindictive smile appeared on her faceas she imagined the scene upstairs; however, in a moment the expression was gone as the four entered the common room, Lavender and Parvarti scrambling up to the girls' dorm in terroras Harry continued to rant at Ron.

"Forgot, did you? How nice, just _lovely_! Well, next time you feel like _forgetting_, tell me, so that I can ask Hermione to give you a detention in advance! What a way to forget, betraying your two best friends at the same time! You slimy git, did you think about how she would react? Couldn't you have at least broken up before you go off making out with two of her other classmates? And why, exactly, was it necessary for youto do this when I had specifically told you that there was a quidditch practice? After all, _you_ are the only one on the team who needs the practice! You…" Harry seemed momentarily at a loss for a proper description of Ron, "you are a disgrace to your family, to, to Gryffindor!" This last sally apparently being his worst, he turned abruptly on his heel and went to sit with Hermione, pointedly ignoring Ron's protesting sputters. The other students in the common room watched in horrified silence; although Hermione and Ron fought often, they had never, ever seen Harry truly angry. Apparently it was not a pleasant sight to behold; in fact from the expression on Seamus Finnegan's face, it looked like no one would ever dare upset Harry again. Also, the few girls who had also observed the row were eying Ron with eyes narrowed in anger. It seemed that he would not be getting a replacement girlfriend anytime soon.

_Good_, Hermione thought, _I wouldn't wish him on anyone anyway – that git, it serves him right. Abstinence will do him good. Maybe he'll even do his own homework for once._

Ron glared at the back of Harry's head for a few minutes longer, and then turned and stormed back up to the boys' dorm. Upon hearing the slam of the door, Harry turned a fierce glare upon his observers, and swiveled to look at Hermione. (The other people in the common room hurriedly found something else to look at.)

"Hermione…about Ron. Did you know…that he was, you know…cheating on you?" He looked uncomfortable, as if all his previous rage had melted away.

"Yes…I'm sorry I didn't tell you when you first came in, but I…I just couldn't…Oh, Harry…you do understand don't you, why I couldn't tell you? Please…don't try to make us make up. I…I don't want him back." She sighed, hanging her head, feeling enormously relieved to have the confession off her chest: she did not want Ron back, ever; any further association with him had lost it's appeal.

"I understand. He…doesn't deserve you. I think that your going out with _Malfoy_ would be preferable to getting back together with Ron."

Hermione started with surprise. That was what she had been thinking, herself…except without the distaste that had colored his voice. In fact, at the moment, the gorgeous, well-raised Malfoy seemed far, far preferable to Ron…


	4. Finale

Wow…sorry 'bout the long hiatus there…I figured I'd continue this once I finished up with Sokka and the Prince, but since that will take longer than I expected, I figured I might as well finish this thing up…this is the end. Enjoy the inevitable sappiness!

* * *

Five months later…

* * *

Hermione, wandering along the perimeter of the grounds, pondered (not for the first time, by any means) her situation. It was ironic, really; no other term was really suited to explaining it.

Her boyfriend –

_Now my "ex,"_ she thought with another tinge of irony, now colored by dislike,

- Had cheated on her, utterly and completely. No getting around _that_. Her best friend had estranged said "ex" for his disloyalty and, possibly more importantly, his failure, once again, to hold Quidditch practice as more important than pleasure. Not that she blamed him, but she knew perfectly well that Ron's relationships weren't the only reason. But that was all right, really…

…She'd found a new outlet. True, Harry would probably throw a fit when he found out where she kept disappearing…

_Since he probably still assumes I'm going off to sulk in the back corner of the library…_

…but that wasn't going to stop her. Nothing could keep her away.

For she and Draco were going out. The stranger who'd only been a menace in her eyes less than half a year ago was no longer a stranger. They met on as regular a basis as her schedule accommodated, in fact. Harry had no idea.

She supposed he'd find out eventually, and then would go back to Ron to rant about _her_ infidelity, but until then, Hermione didn't care. It wasn't that he didn't matter to her. It was just that Draco mattered more…or equally, but in a different way. And frankly, that way was more important, at the moment. Harry was important to her in the way of "my best friend has to save the Wizard World from you-know-who, and if Ron's not going to help, I will." Draco, on the other hand, was half a mere friend and person to talk to, and half a reason to be alive. That first night when she discovered Ron's little secret, she had been utterly unable to imagine how she would survive without Ron in her life. Now, she could barely remember life _with_ him in it, much less imagine going back to how they were.

"Hermione!" a familiar voice rang out across the grounds. She turned to see Harry flying towards her on his beloved broom. Seeing that he had her attention, he swooped in to talk to her.

"What are you doing out here? I've been looking all over for you – I went to the library, but you weren't there, so I came to see if you'd maybe gone for a walk or something."

"Well," she said with a small smile, "I suppose I must be getting awfully predictable, what with you getting it right on the second guess,"

As soon as she said it, she regretted the slightly condescending note her words bore, but he didn't notice. Not that she should have expected him to – he missed a lot.

"No, I just know you too well. Anyway, shouldn't we be going in? It's almost time for supper, and…" She was shaking her head.

"No, I stopped into the kitchens before I came out here – I couldn't possibly eat any more…" He raised his eyebrows, but shrugged.

"Ok, well, I've got a quidditch meeting…I have to run. Will you be in the common room after – well, I mean, will you be there later?" he flushed slightly, and she wondered vaguely if he'd finally gotten over that Ravenclaw girl he'd mooned over for so long.

"Um, I doubt it….I have to go to the library, and talk to one of my professors…I'll try, though, alright, Harry?" He grinned and nodded, not noticing the condescension that colored her speech, and, turning his broom, waved over his shoulder as he flew away.

Hermione smiled. She hadn't lied, even about the library and the professors - and she _had_ visited the kitchens, and in truth, probably _couldn't_ eat more that night. Still, she hadn't mentioned the circumstances under which she'd visited them.

It was a good thing Harry had yet to notice the disappearance of his invisibility cloak.

Without it, she and Draco would have to quit their nighttime explorations of the castle that she loved so much. No one had ever been patient enough to listen to her explanations about the many unusual features of Hogwarts, but Draco always listened to her commentary when they prowled the dim halls. It wasn't the most romantic way to spend a date, she knew, but it was about the best that the castle provided.

…Although she'd always wondered what she and Draco would find when they entered the Room of Requirement on one of their midnight strolls…

"Psst! Hermione!"

She grinned, recognizing this voice as well. She angled her course a little to the left, bringing her right up to the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

Draco leaned around from behind a tree, good naturedly tugging at a hank of her wild hair.

"Since when has Potter been able to tell exactly where you'll be?" he asked with a lopsided grin. His expression told her all she needed to know about his mood – He'd heard her quick conversation with Harry, and was mildly disgruntled that Harry had hoped to spend time with her that evening – and yet, he was amused by how easily she'd gotten rid of him.

"He can't – if you hadn't noticed, he'd been flying in a grid pattern to search the whole campus…He learned it from…" she paused, schooling her face to look like she was trying to remember a name, although she was actually busy regretting that she couldn't safely tell him about Harry's many acquaintances, "some old friend of his dad or another…or maybe it was some distant wizard relative of his…? I don't remember, but it's his last ditch strategy to find something." she said, cheerfully shaking off her "faulty" memory.

He smiled too, managing to only look a _little_ bit suspicious…but then, he used the same trick often enough to recognize it, and there was no real need for either of them to comment.

They both hid secrets from each other about their respective "sides" in the wizarding war; they both knew that the other was hiding information. And, wisely, neither cared to say anything about it. They both knew that the other probably held crucial information that could help the other's side triumph, but their ability to hold their peace on that matter was what made their relationship so special. They knew where their loyalties lay, and never tried to get the other to see why they chose to give that side their loyalty. They never spoke about the war, only about little personal trifles, insignificant but usually amusing facts or anecdotes about their lives, nothing important; occasionally he'd help her with Potions, and she'd help him with whichever of his studies he needed assistance in (especially Muggle Studies – it seemed safest). They never made too many jibes about the other's friends, family or teams, or questioned each other about their motives or their opinions.

They didn't need to.

Because they understood each other perfectly, ever nuance, every pause in the middle of a sentence that hid a misstep; after five months with every possible moment spent together, there was very little about the other they couldn't understand.

Because they both knew how forbidden their relationship was, and knew how their friends and teammates would react. Neither of them cared.

Because they were in love.


End file.
